The Miami Heat provided more evidence Tuesday night they are a legitimate force in the Eastern Conference, knocking off the Raptors in Toronto, 90-89, for their fifth straight win.

Wayne Ellington's acrobatic layup with less than a second to play snapped Toronto's 12-game home winning streak.

Tempers flared a couple of times between the two teams in a very physical game. Raptors forward Serge Ibaka and Heat forward James Johnson exchanged punches and were ejected midway through the third quarter. After the game, Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan and Heat guard Goran Dragic engaged in a heated exchange.

A month ago, the Heat were slumming around with a sub-.500 mark (11-13). That kind of performance will leave a team on the outside-looking-in come playoff time, a feeling the Heat know well — their 41-41 record last season left them ninth in the Eastern Conference.

After their fifth straight victory, Miami is now tied for fourth in the East. Everyone has been contributing; the Heat have eight players averaging double digits in scoring, a rarity. Coach Erik Spoelstra has had to shuffle the lineup around due to injuries this season, but in the past month, he's managed to put the right combination on the floor far more often than not.

Stud of the night

Trail Blazers guard CJ McCollum had 27 points and seven assists as Portland beat the Thunder, 117-106.

Dud of the night

Magic starting forward Jonathon Simmons had more fouls (4) than points (3) in Orlando's loss to the Mavericks. He went into the game averaging 14.3 points per game.

Highlight

Derrick Jones Jr. takes the elevator for this huge put-back slam.

What's next

Thunder (22-19) at Timberwolves (26-16), 8 p.m. ET — These two teams are trying to establish themselves in the Western Conference pecking order behind the Warriors, Rockets and Spurs at the top of the standings. Jimmy Butler (21.5 ppg) and Karl-Anthony Towns (20.2) lead the way for the T-Wolves against reigning MVP Russell Westbrook